Hi everybody. Thanks to Vagans for a puzzle which was enjoyable to solve and gave something to discover at the end – plus a nice cryptic feature in the grid to highlight.
The preamble reads:
Wordplay in all clues indicates the answer with an extra letter that is not entered in the grid; these spell out the author and beginning of a quotation, apart from three words of which two are in the grid (clued by wordplay only) and one is elsewhere. Solvers must resolve a clash in one cell and highlight a cryptic representation (11 cells) of a further phrase of five words in the quotation (leaving one non-word entry) suggesting HOW a conundrum can be resolved. The quotation is in ODQ (7th edition); Chambers Dictionary (2016) is recommended.
No dramas or adventures to report while solving. All the elements fell out slowly but surely: the single clash (37a/24d), the entries clued by wordplay only (MARRY; FLIRT), and the message spelled out by the extra letters:
SYDNEY SMITH CAN A BISHOP HOW CAN HE THE MOST HE CAN SAY
An internet search uncovered the full quote by SYDNEY SMITH:
“{HOW} CAN A BISHOP {MARRY?} HOW CAN HE {FLIRT?} THE MOST HE CAN SAY …
… is ‘I will SEE YOU IN THE VESTRY after service.’”
The word which is “elsewhere” is therefore HOW – found in the very title of the puzzle, as well as the preamble.
The final task was to discover the cryptic representation of the five word phrase in the quote. No grid-staring required as the clash pinpointed the location. Choosing the R from 18d revealed THE VESTURY … nearly but not quite THE VESTRY. In fact we have:
“C” plus “U” in THE VESTRY
| Clue No | ANSWER | Clue with definition underlined | |
| Explanation, with quoted indicators in italics and ANSWER letters in bold caps | |||
| Across | |||
| 1a | MERISM | Complicated symmetries not yet structured to show repetition of elements (6) | S |
| AN anagram of (complicated) S[y]MME[t]RI[e][S] without (not) an anagram of (… structured) YET | |||
| 6a | SOFTIES | Sentimentalists from Seychelles following very good paper in English (7) | Y |
| S[Y] (Seychelles) after (following) a charade of SO (very good), FT (paper), I (‘i: in) and E (English) | |||
| 11a | PREHEATS | Leader blocking reversal of move about rule agitates beforehand (8) | D |
| HEA[D] (leader) inside (blocking) the reversal of STEP (move) around (about) R (rule) | |||
| 12a | ARE | Measure of land arranged oddly (3) | N |
| Odd letters of (… oddly) ArRa[N]gEd | |||
| 13a | RICE | Cereal from bloody fine earth (4) | E |
| [E]RIC (bloody fine) + E (earth) | |||
| 14a | REMITTOR | Revolutionary riot? Try me: I can send money remotely (8) | Y |
| An anagram of (revolutionary) RIOT? TR[Y] ME | |||
| 16a | ENAMOR | Health resort in Rome westbound delight for Americans (6) | S |
| [S]AN (health resort) in ROME, all reversed (westbound) | |||
| 17a | MARS | Deity having million limbs (4) | M |
| M (million) + AR[M]S (limbs) | |||
| 19a | TYNES | Ed’s woes from yen held in bonds (5) | I |
| YN (yen) held in T[I]ES (bonds) | |||
| 20a | OUTLIES | Disturbed lout with matches rarely remains in the open (7) | T |
| An anagram of (disturbed) LOUT + [T]IES (matches) | |||
| 21a | TRELLISES | Triads guarding stone base back training arrangements (9) | H |
| T[H]REES (triads) around (guarding) SILL (stone base) reversed (back) | |||
| 26a | STEAMED | On return, detectives carrying tear-gas moved quickly (7) | C |
| On reversal (on return), DETS (detectives) containing (carrying) MA[C]E (tear-gas) | |||
| 30a | ORMER | Row French sea for shellfish (5) | A |
| O[A]R (row) + MER (French sea) | |||
| 31a | PANS | Criticises grandmothers following priest (4) | N |
| [N]ANS (grandmothers) after (following) P (priest) | |||
| 33a | EN FÊTE | Poetic evening featuring cheese in festivity (6, two words) | A |
| ENE (poetic evening) containing (featuring) FET[A] (cheese) | |||
| 34a | REGARDER | Observer voiced hesitation following about German poet (8) | B |
| ER (voiced hesitation) following RE (about), G (German) and [B]ARD (poet) | |||
| 35a | ETHE | One or other not completely easy for old poet (4) | I |
| E[I]THEr (one or other) without the last letter (not completely) | |||
| 36a | ACT | Pretence has a part to play (3) | S |
| ‘[S] (has) + ACT (a part to play) Alternatively, pretence = act could be the first part of the wordplay, with “a part to play” as the definition |
|||
| 37a | VESTURES | Revs use the short tatty old-fashioned robes (8) | H |
| REVS USE T[H]e without the last letter (short) anagrammed (tatty) | |||
| 38a | LAISSES | Cry of grief among girls leading to tirades (7) | O |
| I[O] (cry of grief) inside (among) LASSES (girls) | |||
| 39a | HALEST | Most robust youthful prince pursued by nuisance (6) | P |
| HAL (youthful prince) followed by (pursued by) [P]EST (nuisance) | |||
| Down | |||
| 1d | MPRETS | Content in triumph, retsina for old Albanian rulers (6) | H |
| Content in triuMP[H], RETSina | |||
| 2d | ERINYS | Fury of old Ireland over grandchildren in Argyll (6) | O |
| ERIN (old Ireland) + [O]YS (grandchildren in Argyll) | |||
| 3d | RECANTED | Withdrawn sports ground needed (8) | W |
| REC (sports ground) + [W]ANTED (needed) | |||
| 4d | SETOSE | Bristly dry comb (6) | C |
| SE[C] (dry + TOSE (comb) | |||
| 5d | MARRY | Damage Scandinavian pattern for rug (5) | A |
| MAR (damage) + RY[A] (Scandinavian pattern for rug) | |||
| 6d | STEM | Check cricket practice areas put up with master’s support (4) | N |
| [N]ETS (cricket practice areas) reversed (put up) above (with …’s support) M (master) | |||
| 7d | FLIRT | Human resources involved in transfer (5) | H |
| [H]R (human resources) involved in FLIT (transfer) | |||
| 8d | TATS | Gallery’s inked designs (4) | E |
| TAT[E]’S (gallery’s) | |||
| 9d | ERODE | Worried rodent with energy having no need at first to gnaw (5) | T |
| An anagram of (worried) RODE[n][T] and E (energy) without N (having no Need at first) | |||
| 10d | SERES | Second puzzled searcher abandoning broken-down car rarely gets dry (5) | H |
| S (second) + an anagram of (puzzled) SE[arc][H]ER leaving (abandoning) an anagram of (broken-down) CAR | |||
| 15d | MAUI | Vagans regularly vague in Hawaiian island (4) | E |
| M[E] (Vagans) + alternate letters of (regularly) vAgUe In | |||
| 18d | MISMETRE | Spoil rhythm of Summertime played striking front of ukulele (8) | M |
| S[u]MMERTI[M]E anagrammed (played) removing (striking) the first letter (front) of Ukulele | |||
| 20d | OLD | Look in force for antique (3) | O |
| L[O] (look) in OD (force) | |||
| 22d | LEND | Queen not party to meagre grant (4) | S |
| ER (queen) is absent from (not party to) [S]LEND[er] (meagre) | |||
| 23d | SONATA | Perhaps Moonlight stays on at Tate shows (6) | T |
| StayS ON AT [T]Ate contains (shows) the answer | |||
| 24d | TETHYS | Letter confused shy sea nymph (6) | H |
| TET[H] (letter) + an anagram of (confused) SHY | |||
| 25d | FREEST | Most unattached before entering party (6) | E |
| [E]RE (before) going into (entering) FEST (party) | |||
| 26d | SERAL | Irish county’s in volte-face regarding ecological changes in area (5) | C |
| [C]LARE’S (Irish county’s) reversed (in volte-face) | |||
| 27d | THECA | Case exhibited in the academy (5) | A |
| The answer is seen in (exhibited in) THE [A]CAademy | |||
| 28d | MARES | Male nostrils for horsey ladies (5) | N |
| M (male) + [N]ARES (nostrils) | |||
| 29d | WERSH | Bond’s Soviet spycatchers changing money for Western bitter in Dounreay (5) | S |
| [S][m]ERSH (Bond’s Soviet spycatchers) swapping M for W (changing money for Western) | |||
| 31d | PAHS | Pascal starts to Haussmannise around sixteen Maori settlements (4) | A |
| PA (Pascal) + the first letters of (starts to) Haussmannise [A]round Sixteen | |||
| 32d | SEES | Understands strains in rural areas around Spain (4) | Y |
| S[Y]ES (strains in rural areas) around E (Spain) | |||
thanks Kitty and Vagans! I fully admit to looking up vagans in Chambers when solving in 15d and getting frustrated. Yes, rookie error.
Conversely, was delighted to learn that “Haussmannise” is in fact defined in Chambers…
An entertaining puzzle with an amusing and unfamiliar theme. The cryptic representation was neatly done. As with last week’s puzzle, I had to get almost the whole grid completed before getting the theme, which adds to the enjoyment for me. Thanks to Vagans and Kitty.
Thanks to Vagans and Kitty – an interesting subject and dénouement. Took me ages to realise the C (see) was the 11th cell. Vagans has previously indicated that he is a ‘retired bishop at a loose end’, so presumably he had a vest(ury)ed interest in the subject?!